Volvo has long been at the forefront of automotive safety technology -- our XC60 is loaded with it, from City Safe to lane departure warning to Driver Alert Control. For 2011, the XC60 gets a new feature designed to protect pedestrians.
Called Pedestrian Detect with Full Auto Brake, this system uses radar and camera technology to keep an eye out for pedestrians in front of the car. If pedestrians are detected, the system issues a warning to the driver, and if the driver ignores that warning, the system applies the brakes.
Yeah, yeah, I know -- another electronic nanny. But when you consider that 11 percent of those killed in traffic accidents in this country are pedestrians, tech like this probably isn't a bad idea.
Warren Clarke, Automotive Content Editor
jeepsrt says:
09:13 AM, 01/ 3/11
I saw some videos of Volvo showing off this new technology, I believe the cars met the back of some trucks, didn't work too well.
joefrompa says:
09:52 AM, 01/ 3/11
If a car is applying brakes for the driver, it should in essence have already determined that there is no way to avoid an accident (short of the pedestrian being a record high jumper).
In that case, i don't foresee the auto-braking avoiding the accident. It's lessening the damage.
Which is great. I have no problem with a car using sophisticated technology to say "An accident WILL occur - the driver cannot avoid it" and then taking all measures to lessen the damage.
bodyblue says:
09:53 AM, 01/ 3/11
LOL I saw the same "oops" video as well.....it sucks to be a crash test dummy!
blueguydotcom says:
10:37 AM, 01/ 3/11
The problem with all these alerts and warnings...there are too many. Even simple cars have a dashboard that has the potential to look like the cockpit of a jet when all the alarms/warning lights appear.
konocar400h says:
10:56 AM, 01/ 3/11
For the general public, I am happy. But for me, I would try to turn it off. Heres why
Say that you were in the right lane when you see a car or pedestrian coming up ahead. There is a car to your left side and you need to get ahead of him. You stomp on the gas to get into the left lane. The city safety feature promptly stomps on the brakes. Embarrassment/cursing and possibility of an accident follows.
I know the example I gave may not be the example of the finest driving practices, but it does happen. I'm the kind of guy who is all for safety features and leaves stability control on 99% of the time. This one just makes me a little nervous, as there are many variables.
ahightower says:
11:54 AM, 01/ 3/11
How long until Volvo gets dragged into a suit? "It's not my fault I ran over that old lady, my car was supposed to stop if anyone stepped in front of me!"
bimmerjay says:
01:10 PM, 01/ 3/11
"Say that you were in the right lane when you see a car or pedestrian coming up ahead. There is a car to your left side and you need to get ahead of him. You stomp on the gas to get into the left lane. The city safety feature promptly stomps on the brakes. Embarrassment/cursing and possibility of an accident follows. "
Well, at least you admit that's really poor driving practice. Unless you were at risk to be rear-ended and could clearly make the maneuver safely, you should be braking and merging behind the other car.
Also, my understanding is that if you react the system will not counteract you. It will only apply the brakes if you do nothing or don't brake hard enough and a collision becomes unavoidable.
bimmerjay says:
01:14 PM, 01/ 3/11
"I saw some videos of Volvo showing off this new technology, I believe the cars met the back of some trucks, didn't work too well."
Apparently the reason that happened is the system was accidentally left disabled in the test car. In Car and Driver's testing it worked great - though the system is only capable of bringing the car to an emergency stop in time if you're traveling at 20 mph or less.
konocar400h says:
01:23 PM, 01/ 3/11
bimmerjay, I completely agree. I didn't know you can override it. That is a good thing.
justinlink says:
01:35 PM, 01/ 3/11
bimmerjay is correct. The system only reacts if you provide no input. If you have your foot on the brake (or on the gas pedal, for that matter), the system assumes you are in control and will not intervene. If the system sees that an accident is unavoidable, it will try to lessen the impact by "pre-charging" the brakes so that they have more stopping power by the time you (hopefully) step on them.
I tried it out at a demonstration 2 years ago at the LA auto show, and the reps stressed that, in order for the system to take full control, that you leave your foot off the brake.
firstwagon says:
01:50 PM, 01/ 3/11
I doubt it will help in all but a handful of cases. Most pedestrian accidents happen when the pedestrian steps out in front of a car without looking.
The driver has no time to stop and splat.
This will only help when a driver is not looking at he approaches a pedestrain (who is also not looking).
calhon says:
02:09 PM, 01/ 3/11
@konocar400h
The Volvo safety engineers thought of that and many other situatuions that you haven't. Moreover, the systems were tested in real-life traffic for years (using taxi drivers, for example) before release.
As bimmerjay said, City Safety intervenes only at the last second when a collision is imminent. It will not intervene if the driver is actively steering or applying the brakes, as it assumes that the driver is fully aware and in control of the vehicle. This video (at 4:05) shows that the driver can maneuver around obstacles at close quarters without the system intervening:
http://www.youtube.com/user/VolvoCarsNews#p/search/1/0x9M1yrQ0Xc
Collision Warning with Full Auto Brake and Pedestrian Detection, is a separate system from City Safety, although the two are designed to work seamlessly together.
City Safety: Low speed collision avoidance/mitigation at speeds up to 18 mph, such as in city traffic. Reacts to vehicle-like obstacles only and gives no warning. Can avoid collisions completely if closing speed is less than 9 mph. Standard on XC60 an S60.
CWAB with Pedestrain Detection: 3rd generation collision avoidance/mitigation at speeds up to 120 mph. Reacts to both vehicles and pedestrians. Provides audible and visible warning and preps for driver-initaited emergency braking; then auto brakes at the last second if the driver does not react and a collision is imminent. Can avoid a collision completely at closing speeds up to 22 mph. Optional on XC60 and S60. The S80 and V/XC70 have the 2nd generation system optiional.
calhon says:
02:20 PM, 01/ 3/11
@firstwagon
That's not correct. The system will detect and auto brake for pedestrians who suddenly move into the path of the vehicle. The system tracks the movement of pedestrians and calculates if a pedestrian is likely to move into the path of the vehicle.
http://www.youtube.com/user/VolvoCarsNews#p/search/5/9fVWB1I9a08
firstwagon says:
03:22 PM, 01/ 3/11
calhon
I don't believe it can "calculate" if a pedestrian is going to suddenly turn and step out anymore then a driver could guess what they are going to do. Can you image how many false alarms it would give on the average city street where the sidewalks are full of people?
It also cannot make the car stop faster, it can only apply the brakes if the driver didn't for some reason.
Most pedestrian fatalites do not occur at 5 mph in an alley like the video. They occur at 40 to 50 mph when someone steps out and no amount of braking will stop the car in time.
Like I said before...I doubt it will help in all but a handful of cases.
calhon says:
06:00 PM, 01/ 3/11
@firstwagon
The system provides at least three advantages:
1. It doesn't get distracted, so it will identify pedestrians moving into the path of the car that a driver may not see.
2. It continously tracks pedestrians on both sides of the road simultaneously up to 150 ft ahead, so it can identify a pedestrain moving in front of the vehicle that even an attentive driver might miss, at least initially. Most pedestrian collisions and fatalities occur in urban areas with high traffic density where drivers have to divide their attention between many things. A driver might be looking at traffic on the left, while a pedestrian is darting in front of the car from the right.
3. It has a much faster reaction time than a human, plus it preps the brakes for driver-initiated emergency braking. So it does in fact make the car stop faster, because it reduces the amount of time that elapses before the brakes are applied. Furthermore, the brakes will be applied at full force - something that drivers do not always do in an emergency.
(Total braking distance = Distance travelled at original speed during reaction time + braking distance after the brakes are applied. Reaction time here is the amount of time it takes the driver to realize that he needs to brake, plus the time it takes to move his foot from the gas to the brake pedal. The distance travelled during reaction time can be 30-50 ft or more at 40 mph, depending on the driver.)
These advantages may add up to not hitting the pedestrian at all, if speeds are low. At higher speeds, the result may be hitting the pedestrian at 20 mph (5% of fatalities) instead of 30 mph (45% of fatalities) or 40 mph (85% of fatalities).
brendan_m says:
06:12 PM, 01/ 3/11
"firstwagon says:
01:50 PM, 01/ 3/11
I doubt it will help in all but a handful of cases. Most pedestrian accidents happen when the pedestrian steps out in front of a car without looking."
I disagree! Most pedestrian accidents happen when a driver does something negligent or illegal.
bimmerjay says:
07:04 PM, 01/ 3/11
"Furthermore, the brakes will be applied at full force - something that drivers do not always do in an emergency. "
Good point - people often fail to brake hard enough in an emergency. Brake Assist and related active systems make a big difference here.
bodyblue says:
07:57 AM, 01/ 4/11
"Good point - people often fail to brake hard enough in an emergency. Brake Assist and related active systems make a big difference here."
How so? In these days of ABS most people in an emergency just slam on the brakes.....
bimmerjay says:
10:33 AM, 01/ 4/11
"How so? In these days of ABS most people in an emergency just slam on the brakes....."
Actually, I heard over 75% of accidents are caused from drivers distracted by BMW's cheap, orange-peel paint.
Seriously though, you'd think that would be the case. From my classes though they figure less than half of people actually brake hard enough until it's too late. In my last class we spent a good hour just repeatedly doing braking exercises. The effect they referred to is almost like a deer-in-headlights, you hit the brakes hard to say 3/4 of their potential, but freeze up and don't go the last 1/4 to 100%. That's why systems such as Brake Assist are great for a lot of drivers, as it automatically applies 100% of braking force if it detects you making a panic stop unless you let up on the pedal. Active collision-mitigation systems can be even better at "encouraging" drivers to brake harder and sooner.